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About Mandy Aftel
The trend toward using natural ingredients was pioneered by perfumer and author Mandy Aftel.
— Allure
Mandy Aftel is like the Alice Waters of American natural perfume.
— Indieperfumes
Mandy Aftel has spearheaded the artisanal natural perfumery movement in the United States.
— Now Smell This
One of the great living masters of natural perfume
— Affluent Lifestyle magazine
Natural fragrance guru
— San Francisco magazine
Winner of Perfumer's Lifetime Achievement Award as "The Last of the Alchemists"
— Perfume Smelling Things
Angel of Alchemy
— Vanity Fair
One of the perfume industry's best noses
— Jack and Hill (beauty blog)
A natural perfume maker with a media dossier that rivals any A-list
celebrity
— Body and Soul
An Exquisite line of Perfumes
— Alternative Medicine
Highly sophisticated blends
— Town and Country
Couture fragrance . . .one of Hollywood's chicest secrets
— Vogue
Aftelier Perfumes: most wanted . . . perfectly chic
— Harper's Bazaar
Perfumer to the Hollywood A-List
— Cooking Light
Ms. Aftel's work as a natural perfumer has been trendsetting . . . ESSENCE
AND ALCHEMY . . . became a corner stone upon which the contemporary natural
perfumery movement was built.
— Bois de Jasmin (perfume blog)
Essence and Alchemy is in no doubt partly responsbile for the current growing interest in natural perfume. You would be hard pressed to find a natural perfumer without a well-thumbed copy of this book on their bookshelf.
— Basenotes
Today, almost every perfume is created from synthetic essences. Although synthetics approximate the odors of natural ingredients, they have none of the complexity, mystery or emotional depth. We bring an inexplicable emotional intensity to the experience of an authentic smell and the memories it sparks and creates.
My approach to creating artisan natural perfumes is based in the quality and integrity of the ingredients. Unlike most commercial perfumes, for each of my hand-crafted liquid and solid perfumes, I choose from among more than five hundred of the finest natural essences found anywhere in the world, using organic or wild-crafted oils whenever possible. The all-natural fragrance materials that I love working with are often expensive, and I want the creative freedom to use not just one or two but several in a blend.
I am the author of three books on natural perfume: Essence and Alchemy: A Book of Perfume which has been translated into six languages and was the winner of The Sense of Smell Institute's Richard B. Solomon Award. Aroma a cookbook (co-authored with chef Daniel Patterson) which focuses on the essential link between food and fragrance and includes recipes for both. Scents And Sensibilities guides the reader through the history and creation of solid perfumes.
My work has been featured on CNN and in Vogue, Vanity Fair, In Style, Time, Body and Soul, Natural Health, Alternative Health, Gourmet, Bon Appetite, Food and Wine, W Magazine, Self, O (Oprah) Magazine, Allure, Health, Elle, and 7 by 7. I was named "best scent" in San Francisco Magazine's "Best of the Bay", included on the "it list" of perfumers in Perfumer and Flavorist magazine and was chosen as one of the twenty-five most influential people in perfume by Basenotes.net.
